1. Field of the Disclosure
This application generally relates to fingerprint recognition sensors.
2. Background of the Disclosure
Fingerprint recognition systems generally provide for collection of fingerprint images and comparing those images against a database of known fingerprint information. For example, after collecting and processing a set of fingerprint images for an authorized user, an accessing user can be authorized by collecting one or more fingerprint images from that accessing user, and comparing those collected fingerprint images, for that accessing user, against known fingerprint information for that authorized user.
It sometimes occurs that, when collecting fingerprint images, whether from an authorized user, from an accessing user, or from a new user, the user's finger might move, twist, yaw, pitch, or undergo a change in orientation with respect to another axis with respect to the fingerprint image sensor during the fingerprint image collection process. For example, if multiple portions of the image are collected at different times or by different sensors, it would be useful to know whether the user's finger has moved, or changed orientation with respect to any axis, during collection of those multiple portions of that fingerprint image, such as for piecing those multiple portions together into a single unified fingerprint image.
It sometimes occurs that, when collecting and processing portions of fingerprint images, similarly, whether from an authorized user, from an accessing user, or from a new user, involves determining an amount of motion, or change in orientation with respect to any axis, of the user's finger with respect to the fingerprint recognition sensor. For example, if the user's finger has moved between fingerprint recognition sensing of a first portion of the user's fingerprint (a first “swatch”, as described below) and a second portion of the user's fingerprint (a second “swatch”, as described below), it might be desirable to adjust the positioning or orientation of the first portion of the user's fingerprint and the second portion of the user's fingerprint before attempting to stitch them together into a unified fingerprint image, with the effect that the collected unified fingerprint image from the known user, the accessing user, or a new user, can be more accurately processed for fingerprint information.
Each of these examples, as well as other possible considerations, can cause one or more difficulties for the fingerprint recognition sensor, at least in that stitching together a first portion of the user's fingerprint and a second portion of the user's fingerprint might introduce errors if changes in positioning or orientation of the user's finger between collection of that first portion of the user's fingerprint and that second portion of the user's fingerprint are not accounted for. When such errors are introduced, fingerprint enrollment and fingerprint recognition may be subject to undesired failures, to the possible document of the effectiveness and value of the fingerprint recognition device.